Review of Tattoo on my Brain Part Six

 Review of Tattoo on my Brain Part Six 

Chapter 16 

"It's only scary if you look down"

I came to understand this chapter better after reading it a second time. 

Dr. Gibbs speaks about a patient with forgetfulness that he told she may have early Alzheimers but there was no way to know for certain. 

A month later he found out she committed suicide. 

When I first learned I had Alzheimers confirmed by PET Amyloid scan in Dec. 2017 I was bewildered because I had no idea of my prognosis.  The best I could hope for was 2 years of a steady course on Namzaric.  I thought about my diagnosis most of the day.  This is why I titled my first book:

I Am Waiting for When I forget I have Alzheimers. 

Dr Gibbs writes on p 158 

"someones fear of the future as they come to terms with the diagnosis can often be debilitating beyond the burden of the physical disease itself."

This is why I write and publish a yearly journal of the course of my Alzheimers.  I am seven months into the writing of my Fourth Year since my diagnosis was made.  I hope the details of my journey will make it clear to someone that if you make the diagnosis early when you only have Mild Cognitive Impairment, you probably have a good many years ahead of you.  

As Dr Gibbs writes on p 168:

"One thing that is striking as you get near the top of Beacon Rock is to look down at the boat dock below.  The boats tied to it are so tiny you can barely make them out.  

Looking down isn't always scary. 

 It can also heighten your sense of gain in altitude.  

You can feel how far you have come."

After 43 months of living a wonderful life with Alzheimers, I can certainly understand and agree with Dr Gibbs above statement.